DekaBank gets into crypto trading

DekaBank customers can now buy, sell and store cryptocurrencies. However, the crypto offering is only available to institutional investors. Private buyers are excluded for now.

"We have the necessary experience, the required licenses and a tested, operational infrastructure to support savings banks and our other institutional customers," explained Martin K. Müller, DekaBank board member, in the press release.

In December 2024, DekaBank received a license to hold cryptocurrencies from the European Central Bank (ECB) and the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (BaFin), according to the German Banking Act (KWG). Earlier, the bank had issued the first digital bond in Germany worth 100 million euros. By 2025, the bank plans to issue a volume of one billion euros.

DekaBank is the securities house of German savings banks and managed assets of more than US$400 billion as of June 2024. LBBW, together with Bitpanda, also offers cryptocurrencies for institutional investors. According to Handelsblatt the Volks and Raiffeisen banks are considering discussing an offer for private buyers in the summer of 2025.